


Of Friendship and Gratitude

by nanuk_dain



Series: Of Soldiers and Secrets [18]
Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-09-25
Updated: 2011-09-25
Packaged: 2017-10-24 00:52:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,961
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/257021
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nanuk_dain/pseuds/nanuk_dain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The war is over. Or: The day Speirs offered Luz a pack of cigarettes.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Friendship and Gratitude

  
[   
](http://pics.livejournal.com/nanuk_dain/pic/0008xqg1)   


 

The war was over. Japan had surrendered, there was no need for them to go to the Pacific. Everybody could go home.

The silence was absolute, nobody could really believe it, dared to believe it. Maybe it was the honest smile on the Major's face that made them realise that it was indeed true. Their time in Europe, in this insane war, had come to an end. Carwood glanced at Ron who stood in front of Major Winters and Captain Nixon, and he couldn't help wondering what would happen now. Ron and he had decided to stay together in the army, but that had been before the surrender of Japan, before the official end of the war. Now, the situation had changed entirely.

Ron returned his gaze, a quick look that told him that Ron had thought along the same lines, and somehow Carwood dreaded the conversation he knew was going to follow sooner or later. He had thought about this for a long time, even before Germany had surrendered, before he'd decided to stay with the boys. He had thought about what he would do should he ever leave the army. He wanted to study, wanted to finish the engineering degree he'd been obliged to abandon when there had been financial problems at home, long before he'd enlisted.

He didn't know what Ron wanted to do, though. He didn't know if Ron even wanted to ever leave the army. He was a born soldier, same as Carwood knew that he himself wasn't. He wanted more, but he also wanted Ron.

More than anything, he wanted to stay with Ron.

When the men cheered and hugged in joy, Carwood joined in, although there was a shadow lying over his joy. Bull and Luz pulled him along with them, the baseball game forgotten. With a smile, Carwood listened to the men making plans of what they would do next. It was good to see them so relaxed and happy. Going home had been their greatest wish, and it had just been fulfilled. Carwood was glad and infinitely relieved to know that his boys were finally getting what they had wanted for so long.

It was late at night before Carwood had the chance to talk to Ron alone. The boys had dragged him along to their celebration and he had been in no position to refuse their enthusiastic and overjoyed invitation. He hadn't wanted to taint their well-deserved happiness even a bit. When he'd finally been able to get away without causing any grief, it had been well past midnight.

He made his way to the part of the former hotel where the officers were quartered and took a quick look around to make sure he was alone before he knocked on Ron's door. It was pulled open almost immediately and Ron let him in, closing the door firmly behind him and turning the key in the lock.

Carwood remained where he was, his back straight and his jaw clenched in nervousness. The whole evening, he hadn't been able to shed the thoughts of what would happen now. Ron looked at him for a moment, then a slight frown appeared on his face.

“What is it, Car?”

“I...“ Carwood began, stopped, then licked his lip and started again. He had to get this right. “Would you like to come with me?”

“Come with you?” Ron's face didn't betray a thing, and Carwood wondered how it was possible that sometimes, he still couldn't read him. “Where to?”

“Huntington.” Carwood blurted out before he could think about what he was doing and take it back. “I was thinking about taking a degree at Marshall University. Finish what I had begun before the war.”

Ron was silent, his eyes unreadable. It made Carwood even more nervous. He gathered all his courage and went on, “But I can't go without you, so I was hoping I might convince you to come with me.”

Ron didn't say anything for so long that Carwood began to fidget. Maybe he had overestimated what they had. Maybe things were different for Ron now that the war was over, now that they had survived and had a choice of what to do with their lives. Maybe he wanted to stay in the army. Maybe...

“We will have to travel via England.”

Carwood's head jerked up at the sudden reply, and he wasn't sure what to make of it. “Is that a 'yes'?”

A smile tugged at Ron's lips, but his eyes were serious. “I remember what you promised at the Eagle's Nest, Car.”

Carwood had to swallow against the sudden lump in his throat. He'd always assumed that Ron had no recollection of that evening, since he'd never said a word about it. He'd been drunk enough that a hole in his memory was likely, and Carwood hadn't dared to bring it up. But _he_ remembered. Remembered the press of Ron's nose against his skin. Remembered the warm breath touching his ear. Remembered Ron's soft plea to never leave him.

Remembered his own promise that he never would.

Carwood swallowed again, then he managed to press out, “You do?”

“Yes.” The smile was gone from his lips, his gaze held Carwood's firmly. “Does your promise mean that if I said no, if I decided to stay in the military, that you would stay, too?”

Carwood didn't even have to think about it. “Yes.”

“That's all I need to know.” Ron smiled again, and this time it was sincere and made his eyes shine. “So, like I said, we'll have to travel to England first. There are things I have to get organised concerning my wife and my son.”

***

The war was over. Japan had surrendered, there was no need for them to go to the Pacific. Everybody could go home.

Luz still couldn't believe it. It seemed unreal, like something that would shatter to a million pieces at the exact moment he started believing it. He stared at the sun rising over the mountains and the lake and marvelled at the beauty of the place. Everything looked fresh and clean and _new_ and it made him aware of his own slightly deranged state. He'd celebrated with the boys throughout the whole night and had just now decided to go to bed. He stared at the bright colours of the sunrise and wondered how drunk he really was, because he was pretty sure he'd never seen a sunrise that colourful.

Well, he hadn't only consumed beer, after all. Beer had just been the beginning. Maybe that was the reason why the world was so bright and cheerful. Nixon, that awesome man, had joined them at some point, and he'd brought some very exquisite liquor with him, telling them that this was the perfect occasion to toast with Mister Göring's finest bottles. They had readily agreed, and then they'd all together taken care of said finest bottles.

There had been _many_ bottles.

Luz drew a deep breath of crisp morning air into his lungs and it gave him the illusion of sobering him up. He knew that wasn't technically possible – or should he say biologically, he wondered – but it still felt like his head was clearing with every breath. Well, except for the bright colours which stayed firmly in place.

“Good Morning.” There was a voice next to him, and it made Luz jump. He hadn't heard anybody approaching him, and when he turned and found Speirs standing next to him, he wasn't that surprised anymore that he hadn't heard anything. That man knew how to move like a shadow.

“Good Morning, sir.” Luz pressed out when he'd finally found his voice and regained his breath. Speirs held out a pack of Lucky Strikes to him, a new, unopened pack that was in a pretty good shape. All right, maybe Luz was more drunk than he'd thought and this was an apparition. Or a bad omen. It could be a dream that was informing him about his impending death. Luz stared at the pack as if it was going to bite him.

Speirs actually smirked, and that convinced Luz that it was indeed a dream. “I don't intend to kill you, Luz.”

Luz couldn't help being slightly embarrassed that Speirs had guessed what he'd thought, and to prove that he wasn't afraid he reached out and accepted the pack. Never mind if this was a dream or reality, he wasn't a coward.

Speirs' hand fell back to his side and he looked over the lake. “Consider it a note of thanks.”

Luz looked at the pack of cigarettes in his hand and wondered if he'd just signed his death warrant. “Thanks for what, sir?”

Speirs turned his head and looked at him until Luz finally met his gaze. “For opening a friend's eyes.”

Luz frowned in confusion. He didn't get what Speirs was referring to. His brain wasn't working properly at the moment, anyway, but Luz gave his best to figure out who and what Speirs was talking about.

Speirs watched him for a moment as if he knew exactly that Luz wasn't following, then he said in a low voice, “I assume you consider the Second Lieutenant your friend.”

Luz suddenly got it, and he couldn't help a chuckle. So there really _was_ something between Lip and the Captain. It hadn't been his imagination, then. It was the alcohol still in his bloodstream that made him bold, and so he said with a little bow, “You're welcome, sir.”

Speirs just inclined his head and turned to leave. Weird apparition, Luz thought. It hadn't even attempted to kill him, and wasn't that what a Speirs-illusion was for?

“Captain?” Luz decided to throw all care in the wind and be even bolder than he'd already been. He just had to satisfy his curiosity. “What are you going to do now?”

Speirs stopped, and despite the haze of drunkenness, Luz became a little nervous when the Captain turned around very slowly. If Speirs was going to kill him, he'd probably do it now. Apparition or not.

One of Speirs' eyebrows was raised, but it seemed to be more in surprise than in threat, and to Luz' surprise, he actually answered the question. “I'm going to move to Huntington.”

Huntington. Lip's home town. It took Luz a moment, then he grinned. “Good choice, sir. I hear it's very nice in fall.”

Speirs actually returned his grin, and for a moment Luz couldn't help finding it rather scary. “I hear it's beautiful all year round.”

Luz laughed, surprised at the Captain's candour. So Speirs found Lip beautiful. That was something he could have teased Lip mercilessly with, but he knew he never would. “I guess that lies in the eye of the beholder.”

“So it does.” Speirs smirked, then he jerked his head at the building of the hotel behind them. “Now get to bed and sleep off all that alcohol you drank.”

Luz stood where he was for another moment and marvelled at what his drunken mind came up with. Then he decided that he had pushed his luck enough for one meeting with The Incredible Speirs, whether he was real or an apparition. He gave a rather lax salute and made his way over to the hotel, paying more attention than usual to where he put his feet. When he woke several hours later to the meanest hangover he'd ever experienced, it was only the unopened, pristine pack of Lucky Strikes in his breast pocket that told Luz that the encounter with Speirs hadn't been a dream.

Since nobody would ever believe him that the Captain had actually thanked him for setting him up with Lip, Luz never mentioned a word of it to anybody.

**Author's Note:**

> Banner made by the awesome Megan_Moonlight!


End file.
